How Damien Chazelle is reinventing the movie musical
What's the story
With a heady mix of nostalgia, Damien Chazelle rejuvenates the musical film. By blending old-school elements with contemporary storytelling, Chazelle's innovative cinematography and narrative structures make the genre more appetizing for today's audiences, even while honoring its history. The result? An immersive experience that strikes a chord with viewers across generations. It demonstrates how classic genres can evolve within the current cinematic landscape.
Cinematic techniques
'La La Land' and visual storytelling
In La La Land, Chazelle employs vivid colors and sweeping camera shots, beginning with a freeway dance in Los Angeles. This combination of realism and fantasy enchants and enhances the characters's emotional arcs. Chazelle's methods transcend the musical genre's boundaries, drawing in audiences by emphasizing the characters's depth.
Deep characters
Emphasis on character development
Chazelle's emphasis has always been on character development. He makes sure that his every protagonist is relatable and complex. His films are all about characters as dreamers, who are facing real-world challenges, which adds the much-needed depth to their narratives. This is how he connects his audience emotionally with the dreams and struggles of the characters. This modernizes musicals and makes them more engaging and relevant for today's viewers.
Musical integration
Innovative use of music in storytelling
Chazelle beautifully weaves music into the fabric of his films's narratives, employing it as a means of storytelling instead of mere entertainment. From Whiplash's music driving the tension and drama of the plot, to the emotional weight of a key scene being accentuated through music, Chazelle's innovative use of music highlights character motivations. By redefining music's role within a film's narrative, Chazelle reimagines musical cinema.
Blending styles
Balancing tradition with modernity
Chazelle also expertly balances the classic with the modern in his movies. He recognizes and pays homage to classic musicals but also introduces themes and styles of the modern day that connect with today's audience. This is what makes his cinematic experience an ode to the past and a revolution at the same time. And that's how Chazelle manages to bridge the generational gap for musicals.